Nepenthes mirabilis (; from Latin mirabilis "wonderful") is a species of carnivorous plant in the family Nepenthaceae. It is sometimes referred to by the common names common swamp pitcher-plantPhillipps, A. & A. Lamb 1996. Pitcher-Plants of Borneo. Natural History Publications (Borneo), Kota Kinabalu. and tropical pitcher plant.http://florawww.eeb.uconn.edu/200900010.html UConn Plant Biodiversity Conservatory and Research Core
By far the most widespread of all Nepenthes, its range covers continental Southeast Asia and all major islands of the Malay Archipelago (minus the Lesser Sunda Islands and northern Philippines), stretching from China in the north to Australia in the south. The species exhibits great variability throughout its range. One of the more notable varieties, N. mirabilis var. echinostoma, is endemic to Borneo and possesses an extremely wide peristome.Clarke, C.M. 1997. Nepenthes of Borneo. Natural History Publications (Borneo), Kota Kinabalu.
The conservation status of N. mirabilis is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List. In Hong Kong, it is a protected species under Forestry Regulations Cap. 96A.
According to Matthew Jebb and Martin Cheek, the pitchers of N. mirabilis are used as toy phallocrypts in New Guinea.
Distribution Nepenthes mirabilis has by far the widest distribution of any Nepenthes species and is known from the following countries and regions: Australia (Cape York Peninsula), Borneo, Cambodia, Caroline Islands (Palau and Yap), China (Guangdong Province, Hainan,Nepenthes mirabilis. Flora of China. Yang G., Huang S., Xu S. & Gao Y. 2006. 海南岛野生猪笼草资源调查及其营养成分分析. [The investigation and study on the germplasm resources and growth of the wild common Nepenthes in Hainan.] Chinese Agricultural Science Bulletin 22(11): 440–442. Abstract Hong Kong, and Macau), D'Entrecasteaux Islands, Java, Laos, Louisiade Archipelago, Maluku Islands, Myanmar, New Guinea, Peninsular Malaysia, Philippines (Dinagat and Mindanao), Sulawesi, Sumatra, Thailand, and Vietnam.Slack, A. 1979. Nepenthes mirabilis. In: Carnivorous Plants. Ebury Press, London. pp. 79–80.McPherson, S.R. & V.B. Amoroso 2011. Field Guide to the Pitcher Plants of the Philippines. Redfern Natural History Productions, Poole.McPherson, S.R. & A. Robinson 2012. Field Guide to the Pitcher Plants of Borneo. Redfern Natural History Productions, Poole.McPherson, S.R. & A. Robinson 2012. Field Guide to the Pitcher Plants of Sulawesi. Redfern Natural History Productions, Poole.McPherson, S.R. & A. Robinson 2012. Field Guide to the Pitcher Plants of Peninsular Malaysia and Indochina. Redfern Natural History Productions, Poole.McPherson, S.R. & A. Robinson 2012. Field Guide to the Pitcher Plants of Australia and New Guinea. Redfern Natural History Productions, Poole.McPherson, S.R. & A. Robinson 2012. Field Guide to the Pitcher Plants of Sumatra and Java. Redfern Natural History Productions, Poole. It has also been recorded from many smaller islands, including Babi, Bangka, Banyak Islands, Batu Islands, Bengkalis, Enggano, Ko Lanta, Ko Tarutao, Langkawi, Mendol, Mentawai Islands (North Pagai, Siberut, Sipura, and South Pagai), Meranti Islands (Padang, Rangsang, and Tebing Tinggi), Nias, Penang, Phuket, Riau Islands (Lingga Islands and Riau Archipelago), Rupat,Clarke, C.M. 2001. Appendix C: Distribution Maps. In: Nepenthes of Sumatra and Peninsular Malaysia. Natural History Publications (Borneo), Kota Kinabalu. pp. 299–307. Tawi-Tawi,Cheek, M. & M. Jebb 2013. Recircumscription of the Nepenthes alata group (Caryophyllales: Nepenthaceae), in the Philippines, with four new species. European Journal of Taxonomy 69: 1–23. and possibly Wowoni. Sunarti, S., A. Hidayat & Rugayah 2008. Keanekaragaman tumbuhan di hutan Pegunungan Waworete, Kecamatan Wawonii Timur, Pulau Wawonii, Sulawesi Tenggara. [Plants diversity at the mountain forest of Waworete, East Wawonii District, Wawonii Island, Southeast Sulawesi.] Biodiversitas 9(3): 194–198.
Taxonomy Nepenthes mirabilis is closely related to N. rowaniae, N. tenax and N. parvula, the only three Nepenthes species endemic to Australia.
+ Differences between N. mirabilis and N. rowaniae (Clarke & Kruger, 2005) Character N. mirabilis N. rowaniae Morphology of leaf blade Acute to rounded Contracted towards the apex, then continuing along the tendril as a narrow, acute, extension Insertion of tendril to leaf blade Simple Peltate Pitcher wings Simple, bearing multicellular fringe elements Often flattened at front, forming a T-shape in XS, multicellular fringe elements often present Leaf blade texture Usually chartaceous Strongly coriaceous Leaf blade attachment to stem Simple, or rarely decurrent for ⅓ the length of the internode Decurrent for at least ½ the length of the internode, usually more Gland density in lower portion of pitcher 1,600-2,500 / cm2 Approximately 3,600 / cm2 Position of pitcher hip in upper pitchers Mid-way, to lower half Upper quarter Position of pitcher hip in lower pitchers Lower third to quarter Immediately beneath peristome
In his Carnivorous Plant Database, taxonomist Jan Schlauer treats N. kongkandana as a synonym of N. mirabilis.Schlauer, J. N.d. Nepenthes kongkandana . Carnivorous Plant Database.
Infraspecific taxa Across its range, N. mirabilis exhibits great variability in terms of pitcher morphology and colour, and it has the most synonyms of all Nepenthes species.Catalano, M. 2009. Nepenthes. In: Growing Carnivores — an Italian perspective. Prague. pp. 50–57. The following forms and varieties of N. mirabilis have been described. With the exception of N. mirabilis var. echinostoma and N. mirabilis var. globosa, these taxa are not considered valid today.
Nepenthes mirabilis f. anamensis (Hort.Weiner) Hort.Westphal (1991) Nepenthes mirabilis var. anamensis Hort.Weiner in sched. (1985) nom.nud. Nepenthes mirabilis var. biflora J.H.Adam & Wilcock (1992) Nepenthes mirabilis var. echinostoma (Hook.f.) Hort.Slack ex J.H.Adam & Wilcock (1992) Nepenthes mirabilis var. globosa M.Catal. (2010)Catalano, M. 2010. In: Nepenthes della Thailandia: Diario di viaggio. Prague. p. 40. Nepenthes mirabilis f. simensis (Hort.Weiner) Hort.Westphal (1991) Nepenthes mirabilis var. simensis Hort.Weiner in sched. (1985) nom.nud. Nepenthes mirabilis f. smilesii (Hemsl.) Hort.Westphal (2000) Nepenthes mirabilis var. smilesii (Hemsl.) Hort.Weiner in sched. (1985)
N. mirabilis var. echinostoma
Nepenthes mirabilis var. echinostoma was discovered by Odoardo Beccari in 1865 and described as a species, N. echinostoma, by Joseph Dalton Hooker in 1873. In 1882, Frederick William Burbidge described this unusual variety in The Gardeners' Chronicle as follows:Burbidge, F.W. 1882. Notes on the new Nepenthes. The Gardeners' Chronicle, new series, 17(420): 56.
Beccari's singular N. echinostoma (vide Herb. Kew) is a wonderful thing, as yet unintroduced—indeed, I suppose unseen by any save Beccari ! The mouths of the urns remind one of the deflexed teeth of some gigantic moss of the Hypnoid section.
Nepenthes mirabilis var. echinostoma is the only form of this species that occurs in Brunei. It has also been recorded from parts of Sarawak, but appears to be completely absent from Sabah.
N. mirabilis var. globosa
Nepenthes mirabilis var. globosa has been recorded from a single undisclosed Andaman Sea island off Phang Nga and from the Thai mainland near the city of Trang.McPherson, S.R. 2009. Pitcher Plants of the Old World. 2 volumes. Redfern Natural History Productions, Poole.Mey, F.S. 2014. 'Nepenthes of Indochina', my 2010 ICPS lecture now on YouTube. Strange Fruits: A Garden's Chronicle, February 3, 2014.
This variety was featured on the cover of the January 2006 issue of the Journal of Insectivorous Plant Society, identified as "Nepenthes sp. from Thailand". Cover of the January 2006 issue of the Journal of Insectivorous Plant Society. Insectivorous Plant Society. The name Nepenthes globosa appeared in print in an article by Shigeo Kurata in the July 2007 issue of the Journal of the Insectivorous Plant Society. The same issue also featured an article by Masahiro Tada that referred to the plant as "Nepenthes Viking". Prior to its description by Marcello Catalano in 2010, this taxon was also published under the informal name Nepenthes sp. Phanga Nga in Stewart McPherson's 2009 book, Pitcher Plants of the Old World.
In the horticultural trade, this variety is popularly known as both Nepenthes globosa (; from Latin: globosus, "globular") and Nepenthes sp. Viking,Mey, F.S. 2011. Nepenthes mirabilis var. globosa, a popular plant?. Strange Fruits: A Garden's Chronicle, December 24, 2011. after the resemblance the pitchers bear to the prow of a Viking ship.
Pitcher infauna A great number of infaunal organisms have been found in the pitchers of this species. These include the sarcophagid fly Sarcophaga papuensis and the mite Nepenthacarus warreni, which have both been found in Australian populations of the plant.Yeates, D.K., H. de Souza Lopes & G.B. Monteith 1989. A commensal sarcophagid (Diptera: Sarcophagidae) in Nepenthes mirabilis (Nepenthaceae) pitchers in Australia. Australian Entomological Magazine 16: 33–39.Fashing, N.J. 2002. Australian Journal of Entomology 41(1): 7–17. Similarly, the mosquitoes Aedes dybasi and Aedes maehleri reside in the pitchers of N. mirabilis on the islands of Palau and Yap, respectively.Sota, T. & M. Mogi 2006. Origin of pitcher plant mosquitoes in Aedes (Stegomyia): a molecular phylogenetic analysis using mitochondrial and nuclear gene sequences. Journal of Medical Entomology 43(5): 795–800. Both have unusual life histories and morphological traits associated with this habit.Bohart, R.M. 1956. Insects Micronesia 12(1): 1–85.Mogi, M. 2010. Unusual life history traits of Aedes (Stegomyia) mosquitoes (Diptera: Culicidae) inhabiting Nepenthes pitchers. Annals of the Entomological Society of America 103(4): 618–624.
The nematode Baujardia mirabilis has been described from N. mirabilis in Thailand. It is not thought to be accidental; the pitchers of this species appear to be the nematode's natural habitat. The microecosystems in these pitchers were found to be dominated by mosquito larvae, midges, and B. mirabilis. It is speculated that this nematode might have a phoretic relationship with one or more infaunal insect species.Bert, W., I.T. De Ley, R. Van Driessche, H. Segers & P. De Ley 2003. Nematology 5(3): 405–420.
In southern China, tree frogs have been observed in the pitchers of N. mirabilis. The amphibians do not fall prey to the plant, but rather feed on insects that are caught by the pitchers.Hua, Y. & H. Li 2005. Acta Botanica Gallica 152(2): 165–175. They are not affected by the acidic digestive juices (which may have a pH as low as 2), likely due to the mucilaginous outer layer of their skin.Hua, Y. & L. Kuizheng 2004. Carnivorous Plant Newsletter 33(1): 23–24.
The first record of an aquatic fungus living in the pitcher organ of a carnivorous plant came from a specimen of N. mirabilis growing along the Jardine River in Australia. The mycelial fungus was observed as both free-living in the trap's fluid and attached to chitinous insect remains.Cribbs, A.B. 1987. An aquatic fungus from pitchers of Nepenthes mirabilis. Queensland Naturalist 28: 72–73.Schnell, D.E. 1992. Literature Review. Carnivorous Plant Newsletter 21(3): 80–82.